"Luz, I know this is all extremely important to you, but don't you think you should master regular teleportation first?"
"Yes, I'm sure I should. But it's definitely been way too long, and I just need to know how she's doing."
...
"Okay, this is attempt number fourteen for cross-dimensional teleportation."
...
'I'm still in the Demon Realm... Don't know exactly where I am yet. I'll have a quick look around'
...
"What about Anne? She originally had the Music Box. What about the Plantars? Are they okay?"
"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I don't know the details. I wasn't there when Andrias got the Music Box. And I'm afraid the bad news doesn't end there... Not long after he got to the box, he launched a widespread attack on Frog Valley. He burned it all to the ground."
"Any survivors?"
"Possibly."
"But you don't know who and where... Andrias told us Anne was dead, but I refuse to believe that."
...
"I might even have two ideas about what do to differently next time..."
...
"It's only a prototype so far. It will probably be a few more days before we can put our plan into motion."
...
"Is that-"
"Yes, it is. But I'm not done yet."
"That- that's Newtopia! You created a portal back to Amphibia?"
"I did. Took a long time and a lot of experimenting."
...
...
Luz stands directly in front of the event horizon, with Lady Olivia, Liwin, and Amity all standing behind her. The portal, several meters in diameter, is still swirling sand through the air at its rim, creating a drizzling sound. Or maybe it's coming from the portal itself, who knows.
She stands there with nothing more than a full stomach and her staff in her hand. Nervous. The way things are going now, the whole thing wasn't actually planned at all. The original plan was that Luz wouldn't be traveling for another few days, because some of the older members of the CATs had previously insisted that she take a few more tests to make sure her travel method was indeed safe. It was also originally insisted that she take some more equipment with her, mainly from Willow's fathers and Gwendolyn, who are genuinely worried about her. It's actually pretty sweet that they care about her, but annoying at the same time.
'They don't trust me.', the voice in her head speaks, 'I'm the only one who can do this. Only I have experience in other worlds. Worlds, plural... And all because they still see me as a child. I'll show them that they can trust me to do more. That I'm not a child. I'm half-titan for fucks sake. I'm the most powerful being on three worlds...'
Luz takes a deep breath, clearing her mind.
"Wish me luck.", she speaks before stepping through the portal and finding herself in Amphibia. She takes another deep breath, immediately recognizing this different air. It's salty, warmer, and more humid.
'Oh, how I've missed this...'
Luz just stands there, her eyes closed, simply enjoying the old yet new atmosphere. She hears the portal back to the Isles close behind her and disappear completely.
"Good luck."
"GAH!", Luz' jumps out of her skin, almost falling over. Someone laughs at that. It's Amity's laugh. Reaching for one of her hearts with her hand, eyes wide with fright, Luz turns backwards. Behind her, right where the portal was, stands Amity with a fake innocent smile on her face.
"AMI? What are you doing here?", Luz asks her in a reproachful tone.
"I don't know what you mean." she replies, feigning innocence.
"You shouldn't even be here.", Luz replies with a hint of panic, "I'll - I'll send you back."
"No, you won't.", Amity replies now in a firmer tone, "Did you really think you were going on this mission alone? ... There were quite a few volunteers who wanted to accompany you, but I knew how stubborn you can be and managed to persuade them that I would be the one to accompany you, and the others agreed to pretend to let you go alone by yourself."
'They don't trust me.', the voice in Luz's head repeated.
"You lied to me?"
"I'd rather say we protected your back. And continue to do so.", Amity explains as she steps closer to her girlfriend, "I know you're stronger than all of us and that you feel responsible for the invasion- please hear me out. We know you feel that way and that you would prefer to do everything on your own... But remember: We are a team. And I'm not just talking about the CATs, I'm talking about you and me too. You and I are a team, and you're not going to send me back because we're going to complete this mission together. Besides, I want to see where you've been in the time you've been here."
Luz blinks at her a few times before she finds her words again.
"How long did you work on the speech?", she asks. Amity ponders for a moment.
"Uh... About since you said you wanted to come back here.", the purple-haired girl replies, which causes a chuckle to escape her girlfriend.
"Heh, okay.", Luz gives in, "But for the record: I would have sent anyone else back."
"Yeah, I know. Luckily for me, I'm not them."
With that issue out of the way, the two girls now take a moment to find out exactly where they are in Amphibia. They know that they are in Newtopia not only because of Lady Olivia's moderately helpful comment a few minutes ago, but also because Luz was the one who opened the portal here in the first place. Taking a closer look at their location, however, is not particularly helpful. Luz and Amity have landed in a curved cobbled alley surrounded on either side by colorful multi-story apartment buildings adorned with corals, sea shells, and other nautical decorations, just as Luz remembers them. What Luz definitely does not remember are all the boarded-up windows and doors, which brings a frown to her face.
"Okay, um... Let's go... that way.", Luz gestures uphill behind Amity for the two of them, hoping they can get a better view of where they are in the city.
As the two of them wander silently through the empty alley, Luz can't help but think that something is off here. The atmosphere is exactly the same as when she left Amphibia. Apart from the boarded-up windows and doors, everything looks the same, even though Luz has never been to this particular part of the city before. No, it is that unnerving silence that has no place in this city. When Luz was last here, the whole city was still full of life at almost any time of day, even if it was just the city guards patrolling the streets and alleyways.
'This is wrong.'
A few minutes into their walk, Amity speaks up.
"So... this was the last place you were before you returned to the Isles?", she wonders as the empty looking buildings slowly pass by.
"Well, not quite. The last thing I remember is that creepy basement under Andrias' palace."
"Creepy basement? Why, did he hide bodies there?", she jokes, but quickly realizes that Luz isn't laughing. "Seriously? Although, why do I even ask? Of course he has bodies in the basement."
"Yeah... I already didn't trust him back then. I knew there was something sinister surrounding him.", Luz adds.
"And you were right."
"That doesn't necessarily make me feel any better...", Luz exclaims.
"But that's why we're here, isn't it? To find help."
"More or less..."
"Huh?", Amity huffs questioningly, "What do you mean by 'more or less'?"
Luz bites her tongue as a sense of hypocrisy fills her mind. She stops and takes a deep breath before answering.
"I... I wasn't completely honest when I told everyone about my plan.", she begins, but stops herself to see how Amity reacts. She just looks at her, silently waiting for her to continue. "I was serious about being here to seek help, but not specifically here-here... The thing is, my friends were last seen here."
Luz lets her gaze wander to the ground.
"And you want to see if they're still around?", Luz nods, not looking at her. "Admittedly, I had already thought something like that."
"You - you're not angry?"
"For being worried?"
"Because I lied to you!"
"I'd just say we're even then.", Amity replies, which leaves Luz genuinely speechless. At least for a few seconds.
"... I don't deserve you...", Luz mutters.
Amity feels as if she can see the ghost of a tear in her eye and closes the distance to her girlfriend, cupping her cheeks with her hands and planting a small kiss in the other girl's lips. "You more than anyone else.", she smiles.
"Besides...", Amity continues, "I really wanna meet your friends."
"Heh, fair enough."
Hand in hand, the two girls walk off again.
The alley actually goes on for quite a while, snaking through what feels like the entire city, before they eventually reach an open space.
"You know, we could have flown here...", Amity suddenly speaks up. Luz can't help but smack her palm against her forehead in disbelief, causing Amity to chuckle briefly in amusement. "Don't worry, I hadn't thought of it either."
"Yea... Doesn't matter anymore.", Luz says as the two girls enter a place not unfamiliar to Luz.
Luz remembers exactly how she and Maddie first arrived in Newtopia all that time ago. Just like with Maddie back then, Luz leads Amity to a bench, which is dangerously close to an unsecured, incredibly steep drop. Luz remembers how she and Maddie used to sit here, where Luz used watch all the people walking up and over this place, just going about their daily lives. There's none of that left now. Besides the two of them, there is no-one around.
The two girlfriends stand in front of the bench, from where they can look out over the entire city from high above. Luz's voice displays a hint of sadness before she speaks up. "Welcome to Newtopia, Amity."
"Luz? What's wrong?", Amity asks anxiously, averting her eyes from the sight in front of her.
"I don't know.", she replies as she wipes away a tear, "It's just... This feels just like Bonesborough. It's like the whole town... died..."
"Luz...", Amity puts her hand on her shoulder sympathetically.
"There's one place I'd like to check.", Luz dodges the subject and merely brings out Owlbert in his staff form.
"I'll go with you wherever you end up.", Amity assures her, which brings a small smile to her face, not seeing Luz's hearts begin to melt every single time.
"I will find you.", Luz mutters to herself.
Amity takes out Ghost, readying herself. Now with a grin on her face, a hint of mischief in her eyes, and Owlbert in her hand, Luz turns to Amity. "Ready?"
"Are you planning to do something stupid?"
"Don't know, you tell me.", Luz replies, before running off and jumping over the edge with a loud 'geronimo', giving Amity a heart attack in the process. "Woooooohoooooooooo"
Amity looks over the edge, tense, and sees Luz now sitting on Owlbert, racing down the steep wall. "Titan, Luz...", she shakes her head. She glances once at Ghost, who meows back at her before shrugging her shoulders.
Grabbing her staff tightly, Amity also runs off, leaping off the ledge.
She spreads her arms and closes her eyes for a moment, convinced beyond doubt that this is by far one of the stupidest ideas ever. Nevertheless, she enjoys the way the wind flies through her hair, the rustling in her ears... The ultimate feeling of freedom.
Unfortunately, a very short one, because after thirty meters of free fall, she is forced to open her eyes again, positioning her staff between her legs, and now gliding down the steep wall in a somewhat more controlled manner, directly following Luz on her curved trajectory, who is flying at high speed, screaming happily as the races along the wide street between two house fronts. Amity, flying about a hundred meters behind her, lets her gaze wander from time to time to the ground and the houses below, where, probably in response to Luz's screams, she sees heads of some... creatures peering out of windows, which Amity then also quickly flies past at speeds beyond all good and evil.
Amity barely manages to catch up with Luz until they eventually reach the end of the road. But instead of slowing down or landing, Luz merely pulls her staff up and comes to a halt above a row of houses. She seems to be looking for something.
"Luz...", Amity catches up to her and stops alongside her, "you're literally insane.", she laughs.
"Hehe... Admittedly, I've always wanted to try skydiving. And this was definitely the closest I could do.", she shakes her hand wildly, "I'm still all jittery."
"Yeah, I can see that. It was nice-", Amity admits, "What's skydiving?"
"It's a human hobby. Basically falling from an extremely high altitude.", she explains.
"Sounds dangerous. But I can see what the appeal is...", Amity says, "Another thing: you flew like an ace."
"Yeah, I'm barely flying these days, and that just felt great."
"Uh, yeah, not my point.", Amity says, causing Luz to tilt her head slightly, "When all this is over, you might be interested in checking out the Gland Prix. It's a race between students of Hexside, Glandus, and St. Epiderm. I think you'd win that easily."
"Maybe...", Luz replies after a moment, "I'll think about it."
"Good, and to get back to our mission, on the way here, I've seen some... creatures that were attracted by your screaming. The city doesn't seem to be abandoned after all."
"Maybe they're all hiding for some reason.", Luz speculates, "Anyway, we're almost where I wanted to go. After me."
"There, there it is!"
Luz screams with joy as a multi-storey yellow house surrounded by many other colorful houses appears on the empty, wide street as the two girlfriends fly close over the partly pointed, partly flat roofs.
"Luz, stop.", Amity whispers loudly and hurriedly, but Luz apparently can't hear her. She draws a small purple magic circle, which grabs Luz and her staff with abomination goo and pulls both of them back onto the roof above which Amity is hovering. "Luz, stop!"
"What?", Luz looks at her Girlfriend in confusion as the sound of stomping comes closer to their position. The two girls hide on the roof as Luz also notices the sound, and look down at the street below them, where three Frobots are coming towards them on the street below, passing them by unaware of their presence. "Wow, you have good hearing."
"Thanks.", Amity replies sheepishly, "When you grow up with siblings like Ed and Em, it's necessary to be able to hear which one of them was trying to prank me. Or if it's a prank at all, or if they just wanted to talk."
"How do you tell the difference?", Luz wonders, genuinely curious.
"When Ed walks- walked normally, he had heavy steps. When Em walks normally, her steps are lighter. When they tried to prank me, they went into a kind of stealth mode. Both of them only walked on tiptoes, and inside the Manor without shoes to be as quiet as possible."
"And how did you recognize them then?"
"Blight Manor is quite old, and it's not long since the floors were replaced. So when I heard the yielding of wood I knew that a prank is imminent. And if anyone chuckled softly while doing so, it was Ed."
Luz chuckles at that notion, but at the same time a feeling of guilt fills her mind. "I've... I've been meaning to-"
"They're gone.", Amity whispers to her, interrupting Luz, "We can go on."
"... okay.", Luz replies, pushing down her previous thought.
Luz and Amity get back on their staffs and glide silently down the wall of the house until, seconds later, they land right in front of the yellow house they've just spotted. Luz sighs sadly. Like many of the other houses in Newtopia, all the windows and the front door are boarded up.
"Okay-," Amity speaks up after Luz just stands there in silence for several moments, "If I remember, you said you were staying with some girl. Isa, or something? Is this her house?", she asks. Luz nods.
"Iva. A friend of Maddie's.", she explains, before taking a step forward, "Come on, let's go in."
"You want to break in?", Amity wonders.
"Sure, why not? We're not stealing anything. And we're not staying. And no-one is around."
"Hm, ok.", Amity just shrugs her shoulders, before summoning some abomination goo, which rips the board off the front door and carefully sets it down next to it. Luz steps forward and opens the surprisingly unlocked door, and the two girls enter what Luz remembers all too well as the living room of Iva's house.
Again, or still, with a sad look on her face, Luz looks around. Apart from the furniture, the living room is empty.
"Iva had something like a small library here in her house.", she says as she walks through the dust-filled room. It quickly becomes clear that the room hasn't been ventilated for a while. Luz runs her fingers over the empty, dust-covered bookshelves as a thought occurs to her. "Amity, come with me. I want to show you something."
Intrigued, Amity follows Luz through the living room, past what looks like a kitchen without a door, to a door next to a staircase to the upper floors. Luz touches one of the mushrooms that seem to be sprouting from the wall throughout the apartment, which, to Amity's shock and surprise, begins to glow at the touch.
"Whoa...", she exclaims slowly, before turning to Luz, who has a small grin on her face, "But how...? That's a mushroom..."
"To be completely honest... I don't know. Mushrooms are used for a lot of things here. There are even some that can explode.", Luz explains, making Amity swallow slightly paranoid, "Don't worry, not these ones. The exploding mushrooms are, as far as I remember, blue with white spots."
Amity exhales in relief. "Don't scare me like that...", she says playfully annoyed.
"Sorry. But that wasn't at all what I wanted to show you."
Luz grabs the door handle and opens the door where she and Maddie spent a few nights.
"Holy Titan...", Amity mutters, "This is my secret study room in the library... But how-"
Like the living room, this room is free of any kind of object that is not a piece of furniture, but also not part of the building. Luz reminisces for a moment, the image of her and Maddie's first night in Newtopia clearly visible before her eyes.
"I actually said the exact same thing back then. I said 'This is Amity's secret hideout' or something along those lines.", Luz speaks nostalgically.
"But how is that possible?"
"It could be an interdimensional constant.", Luz says, at which Amity merely tilts her head in confusion, "Maddie said that it's objects, people, and apparently places that exist on multiple worlds-, in multiple dimensions and universes at the same time. She explained it to me after I came across a few 'The Good Witch Azura' books here in Amphibia. And this room could also be such a constant. Maddie never found any concrete evidence for this theory, though."
"Maybe we'll find more later on.", Amity suspects, "Maybe there are such constants on the Isles from other worlds and we don't even know about them..."
"Good Witch Azura?", Luz asks.
"Well, yeah, apart from that."
"IS ANYONE IN THERE?", a male voice sounds from the side of the main entrance, causing both Luz and Amity to freeze in place, "HELLO?"
Just standing there, the two girls look at each other with wide eyes, afraid of having been caught. Luz is the first to snap back and quietly make her way back towards the main corridor. Amity shakes her head wildly before Luz sticks her head out the door and makes eye contact with a spear-wielding Newt standing in the middle of the living room. Obviously a guard.
"Heyyy...", Luz speaks in an exaggeratedly cheerful voice, "Sorry for just barging in here, but my girlfriend and I are looking for some friends of mine who were last seen in Newtopia."
The Newt merely stares at Luz, clutching his spear tightly in his hands, visibly nervous and scared. "Who are you? What are you?", he asks with a trembling voice.
"Oh, I'm Luz, and this-", she reaches her hand into the room.
"Luz, no!"
"- and this is Amity.", she continues, after pulling the witch towards her into the hallway.
"What are you?", the guard asks again, "Are you friends of Master Marcy?"
"I am, she's not.", Luz replies, at which the Guard lowers his spear, "And I'm part human, part something else. Amity is a witch."
"A magic-user?", the guard gasps, the tension in the air suddenly completely gone.
"Both of us, actually.", Luz replies.
"Oh my frog, that's fantastic.", the guard exclaims excitedly, "We need your help. Newtopia needs your help."
Luz and Amity exchange thoughtful glances. Amity shrugs her shoulders indifferently. "Okay, we'll help. What do you need?", Luz asks.
"Come with me. I need to take you to the university.", the guard gestures for the two girls to follow him as he moves back towards the door, "They'll explain everything to you there, and maybe even help you find your friends."
"Why didn't you say so in the first place? Let's go.", Luz exclaims, suddenly feeling a lot more optimistic than just a few minutes ago. She follows him straight outside, with Amity right behind her. They both notice the guard walking towards an open sewer cover in the middle of the empty street.
"Wait!", Amity exclaims in disgust, "You don't seriously want us to crawl through the sewers, do you?"
"It's the only safe way into the university where we won't be discovered by the Frobots.", he explains.
"We could fly...", Luz suggests, at which the guard shakes his head.
"Everything around the university will be shot down. Plus, personally I'm afraid of heights."
"Fine.", Amity growls.
"Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew.", Amity repeatedly exclaims in utter disgust as she climbs down the steps into Newtopia's sewers right after Luz. She can already smell a foul, disgusting odor. "I hope it will be worth it."
To Amity's mild surprise, the sewer isn't quite as cramped and disgusting as she originally thought. The actual sewage flows in a separate part of the tunnel, surrounded on both sides by walkways. The sewer is also big enough for all three of them to be able to stand upright in it. Nevertheless, it still smells terrible down here.
"Huh, it's not as bad as I thought.", Luz comments casually.
"Are you serious?"
"I mean, it's bad, but I was afraid of something way worse.", Luz justifies herself.
"Oh, alright, okay.", Amity replies. The guard has now also reached the other two girls, having previously closed the manhole cover again. He now stands in front of them, about half a head shorter and with a glowing mushroom in his hand.
"This way. I'm going ahead.", he declares, heading in a seemingly random direction with Luz and Amity behind him, following him.
As they walk, Amity leans slightly towards Luz and begins to whisper.
"So, this is a... newt?", she asks her girlfriend with slight uncertainty.
"That's right.", Luz confirms excitedly but at the same volume, "Newts are the only ones with a visible tail, and slightly protruding snouts. Plus, they're among the physically largest intelligent species in Amphibia."
"I can hear you, you know?", the guard walking in front of them speaks up.
"Sorry.", Luz speaks up as the two girls catch up a little distance to him. "Um, tell me, what happened in Newtopia to make the town look so deserted?"
"King Andrias happened.", he replies coldly, "He turned the continent into a wasteland. Traders no longer dare to come here, people no longer have any food. Some have fled, some tried to fight back. None of them have returned. We had hoped that after the king disappeared, things would get better, but his machines haven't stopped working."
"He's still building more soldiers.", Amity says.
"Soldiers?", the guard asks.
"Those Frobots.", she clarifies, "He's currently invading my world."
"Oh... My condolences.", he says quietly.
"That's why we're here.", Luz speaks up, "We need help if we wanna stop him."
"I'm afraid you won't be able to get much of that here. But the Headmaster will be able to explain that to you better.", the guard explains, "He handles everything."
"Alright."
Knock - Knock Knock - Knock - Knock - Knock
The guard knocks rhythmically from below against a seemingly random hatch cover, which is opened from the outside a few moments later, and one by one the three of them climb out after spending over an hour underground.
"Finally!", Amity exclaims, "Freedom! Fresh air! Oh, how I've missed you..."
A hand from above helps the three of them out of the tunnels before the hatch is closed again behind them.
They now find themselves in a very high, long, but not too wide hall. The architectural style of the whole place looks like one of those old european churches or monasteries. The floor is made of rust-colored polished marble, the walls consist of wooden panels, some large and small, some arranged vertically, some horizontally, some dark brown, others lighter. Also on the walls are a number of enormously large glowing mushrooms that illuminate the entire hall. There is actually quite a lot to illuminate, because the hall is absolutely overcrowded. Scattered all over the floor are makeshift betters, some with four Newts sitting on each one. It is impossible to count how many beds there are in this hall alone, but it is clear that it feels like the entire city population must have been accommodated here.
As soon as Luz and Amity have stepped out of the hatch and are now standing upright, Amity leans towards Luz as the two of them look over all the heads of the Newts in front of them.
"Luz, I've never felt so tall in my life.", she admits, whispering.
"HAH!", Luz laughs loudly at that, which draws the attention of some of the Newts in front of them. Gradually the conversations die out, and with each passing second it gets quieter and more and more newts stare at the two girls. Instinctively, Amity reaches for Luz's hand.
"Why are they staring at us like that?", Amity whispers again, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable.
"Many have never seen creatures like us before. I mean, Marcy was a celebrity here, but I don't think she went out much."
"I see."
At that, the guard speaks up again. "Come on, I'll take you both to the Headmaster. Excuse us, please let us through."
The three of them push through the sheer mass of newts, with the guard walking ahead and Luz and Amity behind him, not letting go of each other's hand at any point. As they walk, they can hear some of the newts whispering.
"I thought beasts were kept in the zoo-"
"Is that Master Marcy? Has she finally returned?"
"Ugh, more mouths to feed."
"What are those things?"
"What's that smell?"
Five minutes later, the three of them turn into a somewhat emptier corridor, at the end of which there is a single, but large door. On it is a sign reading 'Headmaster'. The guard knocks on the door in exactly the same rhythm as he did on the hatch earlier.
Knock - Knock Knock - Knock - Knock - Knock
"I'm busy.", it sounds through the closed door, "Come back tomorrow!"
Against the Headmaster's instructions, the guard opens the door, revealing Luz and Amity to him. "I'm sorry Professor, but this can't wait."
"Hi. I'm Luz, this is Amity.", Luz introduces herself while the headmaster quietly eyes the two girls.
The headmaster is an older, magenta-skinned newt, with medium-length gray hair and an equally long gray beard. On his snout sit a pair of glasses with small, round lenses, and under his eyes are the biggest dark circles imaginable. He looks as if he hasn't slept for weeks. A tired smile adorns his face as he recognizes one of the two figures in front of him.
"Luz Noceda.", he greets Luz, which makes the half-human's jaw drop to the floor.
"You know who I am?"
"Indeed. Before she last left for Frog Valley, I spent some time with Master Marcy in preparation for her travels, and she told me a lot about you.", he speaks in a tired, yet gentle voice. "She said you came to Amphibia from another world, which is not the human world. Is that true?"
"The Demon Realm.", Amity replies, "which is currently under attack by King Andrias."
"Oh...", the headmaster replies.
"That's why we're here.", Luz says, "We were actually hoping to get some help for our cause here."
"I'm afraid we have more than enough problems here ourselves and far too few resources to be able to do anything.", the professor explains dejectedly.
"That's another reason we're here. We've been told that you're looking for magic users, and we want to help."
"That would be fantastic.", the professor says, "I'm afraid I can't make any promises, but if you help us, your efforts will not go unrewarded."
"About that...", Luz begins, "I'm looking for some friends of mine, and I was hoping they might have come by here."
"We keep full lists of the names of all the refugees who have sought refuge here. If you can give me the names of your friends, I'll see if they're here.", the professor assures her. He takes a pen in his hand, ready to write down the names Luz gives her.
"Hopediah, Polly, and Sprig Plantar. Anne Boonchuy. Maddie Flour. And Iva Odal.", she lists. The professor stops at the last name.
"Ms. Odal?"
"You know her?"
"She works as a volunteer in the biology department.", he explains, at which Luz visibly lights up. "Um, are those all the names?"
"Yes. Can I see Iva? Where is that department?", Luz asks impatiently.
"I can take you there. We can talk more on the way.", the professor says before getting up from his desk and joining the others at the door. He turns to the guard who is still standing with the two girls. "Thank you very much, you can take the rest of today off."
Luz is brimming with excitement and joy as the headmaster leads her and Amity through the halls and corridors.
"I don't think I've properly introduced myself. My name is Professor Herringbone."
"Amity Blight.", she introduces herself. "So, what are the university's problems and how can we help? And why did you search for magic users specifically?"
"Frog, I don't even know where to start...", the professor says, continuing without thinking, "We're starting to run out of space. All the rooms in the student halls of residence have been converted into rooms for the refugees, and yet people are already sleeping in the corridors. Now that all the merchants have started avoiding the city or have been killed in attacks outside the walls, we don't have enough food to feed everyone, and we only started growing our own food a few weeks ago. We use the biology department for that."
"How is it that all these people have left their homes?", Amity asks critically.
"When the palace took to the air, many houses in the upper ring were destroyed, unfortunately including the hospital. All the injured and their relatives were therefore brought here and treated. Over time, the word has spread that the university is a safe place that the Frobots patrolling the city do not enter."
"Have there been any attacks on civilians?", she continues.
"Yes.", the professor answers in a somber voice, "Before King Andrias disappeared, he had issued a general curfew. The Frobots have orders to open fire on anyone they catch on the streets. No matter what time of day, whether adult or child."
"Feels familiar.", Amity mutters.
"That happens on your world too?", he asks, at which Amity just nods.
"So, you need help. What can we do?", Amity asks with a serious tone, "Get those Frobots out of the city?"
"No!", he exclaims with an anxious tone, "There aren't many Frobots in the city right now, which helps us save more people. If all the Frobots suddenly disappear, they will only produce more than before, which will then overrun the city and make our mission even more difficult."
"I see."
"I don't know exactly what skills you have, but we need more supportive help.", he explains.
"I know a very basic healing spell, and I'm sure Luz can help them with their food situation.", Amity offers.
"That would be absolutely fantastic.", he says happily, "We only have one person capable of brewing healing potions, and she will appreciate your help immensely. And it might be a good opportunity for us to stock up on potions."
"I'll help where I can.", Amity assures him as the three of them slowly reach their destination.
"Miss Odal.", Professor Herringbone announces as he reaches one of the laboratories, which has been converted into one of four greenhouses, "You have a visitor."
The slender half- newt, half-axolotl with the shoulder-length light blue gills, kneeling in damp earth surrounded by small plants sprouting from the ground, looks up at him. From wall to wall, the entire floor is covered with soil, and only a few wooden planks lying loosely on the ground serving as a path between the tiny growing plants, which are also illuminated by the wide window front. It also illuminates the green overall Iva is wearing when she stands up and notices Luz and Amity standing in the doorway accompanied by Professor Herringbone.
Iva stands up, her eyes wide with joy and shock.
"Luz?"
Iva practically shoots up and nearly loses her footing as she runs across the damp earth and almost falls face first into the dirt as Luz comes towards her, luckily catching her. The two girls share a brief, yet long-awaited hug. As their embrace breaks up, Iva looks past Luz's shoulder.
"Is that-?"
"Yup.", Luz grins broadly, "Iva, this is Amity, my girlfriend. Amity, this is Iva."
Luz leads Iva to her girlfriend, who holds out a hand. "Amity Blight. Nice to meet you."
"Blight? Huh...", Iva shakes her hand with a curious tone.
"Have you heard that name before?", Luz wonders.
"Something like that.", Iva answers mysteriously. "Anyway, how come you're back? Last I heard, you got possessed by some ghost and disappeared! How is that even possible and why are you back?"
"Uhh, that last question is easy. I'm trying to find my friends again, and we offered our help here for the university. I'm helping you with the food.", Luz explains.
"Uh, very good.", Iva says before Amity speaks up.
"And I offered my help at the Infirmary.", she explains.
"Great. Um, when you're downstairs, please say hi to Amara for me, okay?"
"Uh, sure. I can do that."
A short time later, Amity, led by Professor Herringbone, leaves the biology department to give Luz and Iva some space, as the two of them probably have some catching up to do. Fortunately, the destination for the two of them is anything but far away. The Infirmary is actually just a single corridor away, hidden behind an obvious set of double doors. They enter the Infirmary and immediately discover a definitely overworked pink-skinned newt with long brown hair, tending to seven injured patients by herself.
"Ms. Light, I-", the professor begins, but is immediately interrupted.
"Yes, yes, whatever. Find a bed and I'll be right there for you.", the newt replies without even averting her gaze.
'Poor thing...', Amity thinks to herself, 'Even her eye bags already have eye bags...'
The two of them watch with some discomfort as she moves from bed to bed, forcing her patients to drink some kind of potion. The professor speaks up.
"Ms. Light, you really should take a break.", he urges her. However, she continues to ignore him. Whether it's a conscious decision or fatigue, exhaustion and stress, no one can say.
"Well, I'm here to help.", Amity repeats loudly enough that only the professor can hear her, "Do you want me to help her too?"
"I don't think she has taken a break today. Or slept.", he tells her, "Please. Go ahead."
Amity nods before she draws a hand-width purple magic circle in the air and shoots Abomination-Goo out of the small bottle on her belt towards the stressed-out Newt. Instead of being pinned to the ground by the slime as expected, she dodges the attack and slams the slime back with her tail against the wall in Amity's direction. She snaps at her, a furious look in her eyes.
Suddenly she runs at her at full speed, fortunately without any more potions in her hands, and with a quick twist slams her tail into Amity's stomach so hard that she flies out of the room through the door.
"AMARA!", he yells angrily at her.
Amity was thrown from the newt into the hallway opposite the entrance and landed hard on her back on the wooden floor. But given that this is far from her first sports injury, she manages to pick herself up just fine before Amara kicks open the doors to the outside and stomps towards her.
"Amara! Stand down!", Professor Herringbone calls out to her.
As Amara closes in quickly, Amity creates a flame spell that envelops her entire hand in a bright blue flame.
"You better listen to him.", she speaks in a threatening tone of voice. Amara, startled by the sudden heat right in front of her face, recoils and falls to the ground, hitting her head in the process.
"Ow, my head...", she groans as the Professor and Amity rush to her aid.
"Sorry for assaulting you.", Amity apologizes. She kneels beside her head and applies her simple healing spell to her head, where a small wound had formed from her fall which is completely gone after just a few seconds. "There, better. How are you feeling?"
"You're... strangely helpful for a monster.", she says before looking at Professor Herringbone, "What is that thing? And how do I know it doesn't eat newts?"
"IT has a name.", Amity snaps at her, "It's Amity."
"Ms. Blight and Ms. Noceda are magic users and have offered to help us.", he explains. When the word 'magic users' is mentioned, Amara's eyes widen hugely and she stifles a gasp.
Both Amity and the Professor help her up and escort her back to the Infirmary, where they place her on one of the few empty beds.
"Please take a break, Ms. Light.", the Professor urges, but continues before she can get another word in, "Ms. Blight will take care of your patients while you rest for a moment. This is not a suggestion!"
"Yes, Professor.", Amara replies, admitting her defeat as she drops her head onto the pillow. He turns towards the door, but doesn't leave without turning his attention to Amity first.
"Do you think you'll manage here?", he asks in a calm voice. Amity nods at that. "Very well. In the meantime, I'll check the refugee documentation for Ms. Noceda's friends."
Without another word, he leaves the infirmary, leaving the two girls, as well as the injured patients who have just witnessed the entire scene. Before the witch turns her attention to her recently rendered mute patients, however, she walks past them to the exhausted newt.
"Hey, sorry again."
"It's all right.", Amara talks with a hint of bitterness in her voice.
"Are you all right?"
"Yea. It's just... He does not get mad at me. This kind of thing doesn't happen to me. Ever."
"I don't think he's really mad.", Amity replies, trying to sound understanding as the whole subject seems extremely familiar to her. "I'm sure he's more concerned about your health than your performance. I know that well. When I overworked myself at school, my teachers were the same."
"Hmph.", is all Amara says in reply.
At that, Amity turns her attention to her first patient, who must have a broken forearm as it is partly in a cast. He looks at her with a fearful expression, flinching slightly as she begins to draw her spell circle.
"Hey! I won't hurt you.", Amity says firmly, "But I will paralyze you temporarily if you don't stop squirming around like that."
At that, the fear in his eyes only intensified, but at the same time he sees himself helplessly at her mercy and complies with her order. Amity does not return his fearful gaze, but concentrates fully on her spell. She imagines in her mind's eye the broken bone in his arm, the fracture itself, and some of the slightly damaged muscles around it as the spell grabs the two parts, fusing them together until-
"Done."
"What?", the newt in front of her asks, confused.
"Your arm is healed. You're done here."
"But-", his complaint is cut short as Amity grabs the hand of his formerly broken arm and pulls him off his bed and onto his feet. His first reaction was a mix of fear and anger, which quickly changes to pleasant surprise and relief. "My arm is healed. That's incredible."
"You're welcome.", Amity replies, "But you'll have to deal with the cast yourself. Have a good day."
Without paying him any further attention, she moves on to her next patient, who, like the others, has witnessed the last interaction herself. The next slightly older-looking patient lies there stiff as a board as Amity approaches her, staring at the witch with fear in her eyes.
Amity eyes her patient from top to bottom, unable to detect any visible injury.
"Uh, sore throat.", she speaks in a low voice.
Amity nods at that, and applies her spell to her throat. The spell takes about three minutes to heal everything well enough, until Amity realizes that the spell can't find anything to heal anymore and cancels it. Instead of dragging her off the bed like the patient before her, Amity is suddenly overcome with a feeling of exhaustion, at which she wobbles a step away from the bed.
"Whew, I think I need a second.", she holds her head before turning to the newt, "You're done and you're free to go."
With that, Amity stumbles another step backwards, where she nearly falls against the bed behind her and has to prop herself upright, gathering some concerned gazes in the process.
"You really are a witch, aren't you?", Amara speaks up suddenly, no trace of her previous disdain for Amity in her voice.
Breathing heavily, she heaves herself onto the bed and looks at Amara for a moment.
"Always have been.", she says.
"I used to know a witch- er, a magic user.", Amara starts to tell, "Me and a few others were her apprentices for a while. She taught us everything, lots of spells and curses. And after all this crap here went down, I offered to run the infirmary as the only one capable of brewing healing potions."
"Potions were never really my strong point actually. I've only learned to control Abominations, as well as a simple healing spell from my sister, who in turn knows it from her girlfriend.", Amity explains.
"Abominations?", Amara asks, confused, at which Amity points to her abomination slime, which is still stuck to the wall near the exit. "Oh. But magic seems to come naturally to you, like an innate ability."
"Yes that is correct in part. It just depends on what you learn and practice for a long time. Sure, I could still learn other kinds of magic, but it's the easiest if you start early as a child."
"Are all spells that draining to you?"
"It's been a very long time since I felt that way. New spells are always a bit more difficult and require more strength until your body gets used to them and you practise more and get better. And I haven't even used this healing spell four times since I've known it."
"Huh, interesting.", Amara replies as she lifts herself off her sickbed and walks over to Amity. "Are you hungry? I still have some snacks in my potions lab."
"Sure."
Amity gets up from her bed, only to stumble forward a few steps again before Amara thankfully catches her and props her up.
"Careful... Come on, I'll bring you there."
Supporting the weakened girl by the shoulders, Amara guides her to the end of the room, away from the rest of the patients and through a gray curtain into a smaller, adjoining room.
"Ugh, I know now how Luz must have felt...", Amity mutters.
"Someone you know I presume?"
"My girlfriend.", the purple-haired witch replies, "She had completely exhausted herself after getting my dad to- ... Nevermind."
"Is she here too?", Amara asks, sensing that this is a sensitive topic.
"Yes. She's helping Iva in the biology department. I'm supposed to say hi to you from her, by the way."
"Oh...", Amara smiles slightly at that, "Thank you."
Amara leads Amity to a comfortable-looking chair with a matching back and armrests, where she sets her down. The whole room looks like an elegant office, which has been converted into a makeshift potion lab. There are pictures and framed awards on the walls in equal measure, as well as shelves full of potion ingredients and reference books. And, of course, the huge potion cauldron in the middle of the room, in which a light blue potion is currently being brewed. Behind a second, identical chair on which Amara drops, Amity discovers an open cabinet behind her full of different colored, partially glowing potions.
"Holy Titan...", Amity marvels, prompting Amara to turn around to face the same cabinet.
"Oh, I've been brewing this for the last two weeks or so.", the newt explains.
"What's all this?"
"Various things. Healing potions, paralysis, growth, shrinking, strength, invisibility, speed, hairiness, transformation, stunning, melting, freezing, petrification, beastification, and a few sleep potions."
"Wow, what's all that for?", Amity wonders.
"Honestly? I just wanted to stay in practice. Apart from healing and sleeping potions, I have no use for any of the others.", she explains.
"Heh... We should definitely talk to Luz about this later.", Amity says ominously, "But right now, I could use a snack."
"Right. I'll get them right away."
"Wait wait wait... Newt-jitzu?", Amity asks with a chuckle, "That sounds made up."
"And yet I kicked your ass earlier."
"Hmm... Point taken."
A little over an hour has passed since Amity first entered the Infirmary, and she and Amara seem to have more in common than originally thought. Controlling, rich, and powerful parents who planned and controlled their every move, always expecting nothing less than absolute perfection. When they were both younger, they were forbidden to associate with other children of their choosing, but while Amity grew up with the twins, Amara has no siblings.
After the two girls got to know each other a little better over some insect snacks, which Amity actually found quite delicious and packed a few for Luz as well, they set out together to heal the remaining patients and release them, after which they find the Infirmary completely empty.
"Maybe I should check on Luz.", Amity says thoughtfully as she looks around the room.
"I'll come with you.", Amara joins in, "I'm not supposed to leave the Infirmary unattended, but..."
"You want to see your girlfriend?", Amity asks, part teasing, part curious, "don't think I didn't see your smile earlier."
"I have no idea what you're talking about.", Amara says, feigning ignorance, before opening up and disappearing out the door. Amity follows her in an amused mood.
They step out onto the hallway, at which Amity realizes that the newt is walking in the wrong direction.
"This way.", Amity says, pointing to her left. Amara, who was just in the hallway straight ahead from the Infirmary, turns around on the spot, walking back and immediately past Amity, who herself is grinning gleefully.
Less than sixty steps later, they find themselves outside the biology labs, where the two girls can already hear Luz's voice through the door, talking about her time on the Isles. They quietly open the door, behind which Luz and Iva are both sitting on one of the floor panels with their backs turned to them.
"- and then she chased me all over town through every alley and street imaginable. I thought I'd shaken her off in the woods to the Owl House, but I guess she knew exactly where I was going."
"You are only THERE?", Amity exclaims in surprise, sending a jolt of shock through both girls' entire bodies.
"Amity!"
"What, we've been gone for over an hour and you're only at that part of the story?", the witch asks.
"I've just drifted off a lot, okay?", Luz explains with a false attack, "ADHD, you know?"
"AAAMARAAAA!", Iva suddenly shouts, standing up and running to her before practically showering the brunette Newt with kisses all over her face. Amara grins and giggles sheepishly until she realizes the two of them have an audience.
"Ivy, stop.", Amara gently nudges her away from her. Her gaze first wanders to Amity, whose look more than clearly says 'I knew it'. Her eyes move on to Luz, who stands up with a friendly smile on her face, walks over to her and holds out her hand.
"Hi, I'm Luz."
"Amara. Amara Light.", she introduces herself, at which Luz looks at Amity with wide eyes, still shaking Amara's hand. "Is something wrong?"
"Oh, no, no.", Luz abruptly lets go of her hand, "Your names just sound very similar."
Amity and Amara look at each other in confusion. Luz continues.
"You know what I mean. Amity... Amara... Blight... Light...", she emphasizes.
"Wait- wait- wait...", Amity glances quickly back and forth between Luz and Amara, "You don't think we're both..."
"Could be.", Luz shrugs her shoulders.
"Holy Titan..."
"Uh, could someone fill us in on what's going on?", Iva asks, her mind swirling in confusion.
"Maybe later.", Luz replies, "How'd it go with you guys?"
"We emptied the infirmary.", Amity replies.
"She means 'we cured all the patients'.", Amara corrects her.
"Uh, great.", Luz replies enthusiastically, "We... well..."
"You were just chatting, I know."
"Hey, not fair... Okay, we weren't particularly productive, but... uhh...", Luz loses the thread.
"I'm growing plants here. That kind of thing takes a lot of time.", Iva explains, whereupon Luz thinks for a moment and shakes her head.
"What exactly are you growing here?", she asks.
"Only wheat here and across the hall, and various vegetables in the other labs.", Iva explains.
"Yeah, I can work with that.", Luz says smugly as the first few golden lightning bolts appear on her arms, at which Amara quickly pulls Iva into cover behind her. With a plant glyph in front of her inner eyes, the lightning bolts shoot directly into the earth, and huge, fully-grown wheat plants emerge within seconds wherever only the smallest sprouts had previously sprouted. Both Iva and Amara are completely astonished.
"You did tell me that you now have your own magic, but to see it with your own eyes... just whoa.", Iva marvels, "Can you teach me how to do that? We could supply the whole town with food that way, making us no longer depending from the traders that aren't coming anymore."
"Sorry, but I don't think that's going to be possible.", Luz says with just a hint of certainty, "I mean, I can show you the glyphs and explain how they work, but I can't guarantee you'll be able to activate them, and definitely not after I'm gone."
"What do you mean?"
"When I first arrived in Amphibia, I was the only one who could activate my glyphs.", Luz recounts, "On the Isles, the glyphs were- or are powered by the Titan's magic. And before I left this world again, I met the Titan. Well, the part of him from this world... Anyway, he had transferred all his magic to me, which I believe allowed me to activate the glyphs up to that point."
"But why only you?"
"Because of Owlbert, perhaps. I don't know...", Luz shrugs her shoulders as an idea pops into her head. "Let's test it out."
Luz pulls out two glyphs from her emergency supply, which she carries with her at all times, and hands Iva two light glyphs. She continues.
"Here's what we're going to do: Iva, you activate one of the glyphs now, and we'll see if anything happens. You just have to tap the paper to do this.", Luz explains at which Iva nods, "Then I'll teleport away for a few seconds while you try to activate the second glyph."
"Where are you going?", Amity wonders.
"Once to the other end of the city and back.", Luz elaborates. Amity doesn't say anything else, which Luz takes as a sign of approval to start her experiment. "So, Iva, activate the first glyph!"
Iva does as she is told and activates the light glyph, which surprisingly actually works and creates a ball of light, silently floating in the air above her hand. Luz stares at the orb in genuine surprise, but doesn't comment on it for the moment.
"Okay, very good.", she says instead, "When I'm gone right now, you activate the second glyph, okay?"
"Okay."
Luz takes a few steps back from the others and activates her teleport spell, whereupon she disappears completely after a few moments. Iva presses her fingers on the glyph again, and nothing happens at first. Then, however, after a few more seconds, the paper crumples up and actually forms another ball of light, although it is only a fraction of the size of the previous orb.
About twenty seconds later, Luz reappears in the room, the orb long gone.
"So?", she asks expectantly.
"It worked, but the light was much smaller.", Amara reports.
"I was expecting that.", Luz says in a thoughtful tone, "Okay, here's my theory: before the Titan transferred his magic to me, he had somehow only allowed me to access his magic, which makes sense, since he also threw me specifically into Amphibia. And now that his magic is in me, that selectivity no longer exists. However, I have to be actively nearby for other people to be able to use glyphs. So when Amity and I leave later, the glyphs won't do you much good."
"I think I understand.", Iva says, clearly disappointed.
"Don't worry, I'll help you where I can until then.", Luz tries to cheer her up.
Shortly afterwards, there is a knock on the lab door. It opens and the headmaster enters the room with an enormous amazement in his eyes.
"My goodness...", he has to pick his jaw up from the floor as he spots the enormous plants in front of him, "This is incredible. Did you work this miracle?", he looks at Luz and Amity, the latter of the two pointing at Luz.
"I did, like I promised.", Luz exclaims proudly, "Was your search successful, Professor?"
"I'm afraid I don't come with good news.", he begins, "We've been able to look through about a third of the list, but so far we haven't been able to find any of the names you gave me. I'm actually here to offer you both a place to sleep for the night and I'll have a result by tomorrow morning."
Luz and Amity look at each other, both apparently thinking the same thing.
"We accept your offer, Professor. Thank you very much.", Amity says gratefully.
"Very good. Shall I show you to your accommodation?", he asks.
"I'll go with you, Professor.", Amity says, "I'm sure Luz and Iva still have more than enough to do."
"And I should head back to the Infirmary.", Amara says goodbye, "It's been nice to meet you both."
And with that, the three of them leave the biology department again, leaving Luz and Iva with their farm work. Amara splits off from Amity and Professor Herringbone, the two of them walking back towards his office.
"I'll have two beds brought in for you. I just need to take a few documents with me and will let you use my office for the night."
"Thank you very much, Professor. That's very kind of you.", Amity thanks him with a slight bow of her head.
"No, I have to thank you. You and Ms. Noceda. You've made two of our biggest problems by far a lot more manageable, and that so soon after your arrival. That's a huge weight off all our shoulders."
"But these are not permanent solutions.", Amity interjects.
"I know, but please let us worry about that.", he insists, "I can imagine that your mission will help us all too when you succeed. And that's why I'll do what I can to help you both."
"Thank you."
A few hours pass, the sun has long since disappeared behind Newtopia's enormously high walls, and darkness has enveloped the city. Luz and Amity sit across from each other on their makeshift beds in the Headmaster's office, just talking with each other.
"How many harvests did you collect today?", Amity asks.
"Umm... Seven, I think."
"Seriously?!", Amity exclaims, incredibly impressed.
"I knew farming was incredibly physically demanding, but I'm literally aching right now.", she whines jokingly, "It was worth it though."
"I can imagine you're completely exhausted."
"Totally...", the half-human admits, "I could just fall asleep right now, but there's something I wanted to talk to you about first."
"Huh?", Amity hums.
"It's actually been on my mind for a while, and- and I know what you're going to say. You're going to say that there's nothing I could have done, or that I was right to try anyway, or-"
"Luz!", Amity gently cuts her girlfriend off, "What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about... about Edric. When- when I tried to bring him back.", Luz averts her eyes.
"What are you talking about?", Amity asks, sounding genuinely confused.
"Before I got your dad... We both arrived at the knee and I was trying to heal his body. Took quite a lot out of me...", Luz recounts the painful events, her gaze focused on Amity, whose face doesn't show a hint of recognition.
"Noo... You were exhausted when you got Dad...", Amity contradicts.
"No, I didn't. I-", Luz chops herself off as a horrible realization hits her, "Oh Ami, no."
"What?"
"No no no no... Why did you do that?"
"What- what did I do?", Amity asks, slightly panicing now.
"The funeral.", Luz says as if that explains everything, "You chose the memory where I tried to bring Edric back, which then... was burned."
"Yeah, that's the point of it. Along with the deceased, shared memories are also cremated. A good one and a bad one. I suppose there was a reason I chose this particular memory."
"You really shouldn't have done that.", Luz complains for a reason that even she doesn't know.
"But I did apparently. What do you want to hear from me?", Amity asks, slightly annoyed by this topic, which actually makes Luz shut up for a moment.
"I- Um, so-", she stutters, "Ugh, I don't know. Guess it just hurts that you just... erased that memory. Like, a part of us, even if it was probably one of the worst moments of our lives."
"I understand you, you know.", Amity stands up and walks over to Luz, sitting down next to her, "I can't tell you why I chose that memory. I can only guess, and I suspect it was something that caused negative feelings for you. At least that would be the only reason I would do it today."
"Negative feelings?", Luz asks.
"Like, I don't know...", Amity thinks for a moment, "I can imagine that I somehow reproached you internally or something. That... that I had some thoughts that weren't fair to you and might have had an unfairly negative impact on our relationship."
"That... that makes an awful lot of sense. I mean, I remember you being quite a bit more distant from me up until the funeral, but I had thought you just needed time and space to grieve. I know that everyone grieves differently...", Luz states before turning to Amity, "Ami, can you promise me something?"
"Anything."
"Please don't do that again.", Luz takes her hands into her own, "Please don't erase any more memories. When we reach a hurdle, however big it may be, we will overcome it together. Together, we can do anything."
"Heh, yeah that's right.", Amity says, "Okay. I promise."
"Thank you."
Author's Note: If you're wondering: 'Amara Light? Is that the same one from 'The Owl and The Frog'?' Yes, yes it is. ^^